I had the great opportunity to talk with Minnesota lawyer, Laurel Learmonth recently. Ms. Learmonth has been practicing law in Minnesota for forty-five years at the same Minneapolis law firm with a primary focus on family law. On its own, forty-five years of practice is a staggering accomplishment, of course. On top of that Ms. […]
The unjust enrichment case of Mr. Paul Herlache against Ms. Amy Rucks is now pending before the Minnesota Supreme Court. (Here is the intermediate Minnesota Court of Appeals decision.) Briefly, Ms. Rucks is a successful executive, bringing home $350,000-$500,00/year plus benefits and stock options from a medical device company (at least as of the date […]
March 1, 2023: The Minnesota Supreme Court heard oral arguments on 2/28/23. Our view, expressed in the post, below, remains unchanged (or has even gained strength). We have no doubt that the #MeToo movement is a long overdue and welcome development in our culture. But a statement that John Doe committed a sexual assault (when […]
December 21, 2022 Update: Glen Taylor’s lawyers’ motion to amend to add a claim for punitive damages was denied. Reading Judge Patrick Diamond’s order makes the result seem obvious to us (though, as all can see below) we were reluctant to predict denial before the ruling): [A]pplying sections 549.191 and 549.20, the evidence presented by […]
When Minnesotans divorce (and probably under many states’ laws if not all of them), the ex-spouse is stripped out of the other ex-spouse’s will by statute. Presumably we don’t need to explain why the legislature might want to enact that law but here we go: Wills often leave much or all of one’s estate to […]
On first impression, the Minnesota Court of Appeals might seem to have been on thin ice when, in a recent case in a dispute over a will, it affirmed a district court ruling that a will’s requirement that an option to close on a purchase of real estate “within 180 days of my death” was […]
In the petition for disciplinary action against Minnesota lawyer, Joseph D. Roach, it is unfortunate, in our view, that such obviously unethical conduct still poses thorny and difficult issues for the Minnesota Supreme Court. It is unfortunate that the disciplining of unethical conduct is such a painstaking, slow, and uncertain process. This leads to cynicism […]
Update (2/4/22): As suggested in the long string of posts, below, we have never been particularly moved by the plaintiff’s case in this battle of ladder manufacturers. As described below, the fight’s about whether a certain ladder design is “ANSI compliant” and, if not, whether claims that it is violate the law. After a bench […]
The Minnesota Supreme Court, over a strong dissent (by Justice Anderson, joined by Chief Justice Gildea), decided recently, in a decision penned by Justice Anne K. McKeig, that Polaris, a prominent Minnesota manufacture of all-terrain vehicles, snow mobiles, and more could not withhold a report, in its entirety, from discovery in a lawsuit brought by […]
In the on-going saga of Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative (SMBSC) v. Agri Systems (previous posts, here and here), we observe the classic slightly silly trial lawyer scenario when (1) Party A advocates for Position A (no jury), (2) the adversary, Party B, fights for Position “Not-A” (trial by jury) (3) Party B reverses course, […]